Spoiler No One Stops- How one changed word alters the meaning of one of Nier's most important scenes (Spoilers for Nier/ Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139...)

[WestEgg]

When the original Nier was remade as Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139..., the game was redubbed with mostly the original cast. For the most part, this was done fairly well, and it is how I first experienced the game. However, here and there bits of the dialogue were slightly altered, and there is one example that really sticks out to me, because a single word change has, in my opinion, a profound impact on the emotion of the scene in question and the intention of the character who says the line.

This is going to get into spoilers for the ending of Nier, and may by proxy spoil some elements of NieR: Automota, so please do not read further if you have not played a version of Nier yet.

Let's compare the famous "No One Stops" moments in both the original Nier and in Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139... Note that only Nier Gestalt, the version of Nier that features the older father version of Nier was localized in English, so he appears in the first clip, while the younger brother Nier appears in the second. This has little bearing on the actual scene in question.

If it doesn't automatically, start the clip at 12:35





and compared to the Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139... version, start the clip at 1:28





For the text comparison:

Nier

Popola: Stop? Stop? You want me to stop? You think I have the luxury to stop? You cut down my sister like an animal and you tell me to stop? No one stops! It's way too late to stop! NO ONE STOPS!

Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139...

Popola: Stop? Stop? Now you want to stop? You think you have the luxury to stop? You cut down my sister like a goddamn animal and now you want to stop? No one stops! It's way too late to stop! NO ONE STOPS!

Now leaving aside the added profanity in the remaster, the far more interesting change is "You think I have the luxury to stop?" versus "You think you have the luxury to stop?" This may seem relatively minor, but the implications of each question are very different. In the latter example, she frames the action around Nier and the tone comes off as much more vengeful and accusatory. "You think you have the luxury to stop?" This is a threat. Her subsequent breakdown is an understandable one of grief, rage, and revenge towards Nier.

But I think the remaster did a disservice to the original in this case. In the original version, Popola makes herself the subject. "You think I have the luxury to stop?" This is not a threat. This isn't even about Nier. This is about Popola, her duty in fulfilling her mission, her duty to her sister, and a lamentation of her fate. This is a resignation to the role she has been given and must carry out. The subsequent breakdown in turn now feels more like a rage against her fate and the injustice of the world, rather than against Nier himself.

To me, the original just fits so much better with the themes of the game and message of the story. While it could be argued that Nier is primarily about how morality is relative, and you could say that Popola avenging her sister mirrors Niers own quest for vengeance against the Shadow Lord, that is Nier's story, not Popola's and Devola's. They are supposed to be the caretakers of the Gestalt project, given responsibilities and emotions they never asked for. They are tragic, pitiable characters, who ultimately die having failed their life's purpose and letting humanity die. They are pawns of fate, and Popola understanding this and raging against the world itself in her final moments just feels so much more powerful.

 

[RochHoch]

Having (begrudgingly) played through Replicant's climax four whole times earlier this year (yes, four. I must have turned the Playstation off without saving after clearing it the first time) I can hear Popola's lines here without clicking the video

The original version definitely is way better. Popola being painted as a parallel to Nier is some good stuff, really helps to bring the game's themes full circle

 

[Hailinel]

Honestly, I prefer the remaster version. Not just because it's likely a more accurate translation, but because of the implication that it places on Nier. Popola basically hammered it in that Nier can't just turn back. He can't make everything as it was, and he still had to go find his sister (and also the Shadowlord). Popola was never a parallel to Nier. She was an overseer of him that, along with Devola, grievously fucked up.

 

[Imitatio]

I mean, I'd say, as has been pointed out already, that it fundamentally works well both ways. It's either related to Popola, thus highlighting her struggle to finish her's and her sister's task, or to Nier, pretty much having the same effect as with Popola but from his point of view/with his struggle in mind. I think that's what actually makes the "No one stops" line so great in particular, as it encapsulates this perfectly, no matter whether the prior lines refer to "you" or "I", with all of these people ultimately struggling to push through to achieve what they set out to do/what they were tasked with, and with them ending up having to oppose one another at this point.

 

[xghost777]

I never played PS3 Nier so I never knew the line was different. Yeah that radically changes the whole conversation. I prefer the original comparing the two.